Nov

17

Quince preserve

November 17, 2008 |


In late autumn quinces, Cydonia Oblunga appear on our markets with their bright golden yellow color and intense perfume. Quince has an hybrid shape between an apple and a pear, a hard flesh and a very acid taste. The unripe fruit has a downy skin, while the ripened fruit has the smooth texture of its relatives (apples and pears). They’re inedible if eaten raw so they’re mainly used for marmalade, preserves, cotognata and mostarda. In the old days they were placed in the closet to perfume the linens. If you want to have a natural air freshener, take a fruit with the stem and peel it, insert some cloves in it (optional) and hang it in your closet by the stem or in a room you’ll smell its fragrance for about 6 months.

I was just thinking about quinces, mele cotogne in Italian, the other day and the preserve that my mom used to make, then while buying some fruit and veggies I saw a crate of them and bought them right away. I made this marmalade for the first time following my mother suggestions. I didn’t make it too sweet as I prefer  to taste a hint of the fruit’s tangy flavor.

Quinces Preserve

2 lbs. ripe quinces
sugar
few drops of lemon juice

Put the quinces in a pan partially cover them with water and cook them for about  20-30 minutes depending on their size until they are tender but not mushy. When ready eliminate the core and pass them through a fine vegetable strainer still with their peel. Weigh the pulp left and use half of the weight in sugar. Cook the pulp together with the sugar for about 20 minutes or until it resemble a marmalade. Put the preserve in a glass preserving jar. Sterilize the jar if you’re not eating the preserve right away, I didn’t I couldn’t resist.


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